When a popular book or property is announced for a movie, the first reaction of many fans is “They should make it a TV series instead.” Television gives complex stories time to develop, where movies sometimes rush though popular stories to meet a specific run time. The novel to miniseries transition, without a movie adaptation, can be incredibly successful (Game of Thrones) or incredibly polarizing (Under the Dome) and isn’t as frequently done as the novel-to-movie shift.

Now, something even rarer and more exciting is happening. The Norwegian film Headhunters, which had been slated for an English language remake with Mark Wahlberg circling, is now being developed into an HBO series. Originally the property was a popular Norwegian novel by Jo Nesbø, which was then adapted into that excellent 2011 film by Morten Tyldum. The English remake rights to that film were purchased by Summit. Lionsgate then purchased Summit, along with the rights, and they’ve now decided HBO is a better place for the story than the big screen. Read More »

The other day we told you about Vaughn Meader, a film that is being developed as a star vehicle for Bill Hader. It isn’t a big broad studio comedy, however. The actor would play real-life comedian and impersonator Vaughn Meader, who built a career out of a JFK impression that was enjoyed by huge audiences — the President even loved it — and then saw that career disappear virtually overnight when Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

Rob Siegel was said to be involved, and the script sounds as if it has some of the key elements of sweetness and darkness that characterized his last two big scripts, The Wrestler and Big Fan. Now we know that he will also direct Vaughn Meader, which makes the movie even more promising. Read More »